Fastlsvette

Ok cheapest way to turbo the c5 or i guesd the best option would be swap an lq4 and add a small turbo cam with a t76 front mount turbo??

MVP'S ZO6

Cheap and the words turbo, forced induction, supercharger, reliability and corvette do not go together.

Average twin turbo kit price seems to be about 8-10K though.

A quick search on here or google with what you speak of should yield some results that your looking for.

HTH

Fastlsvette

Yeah i know FI and cheap dont go together but im really sure you can have a good setup for under 5k

nullpointer

I have been thinking about doing a custom front mount for a while. I can't find any information on what headers fit on each side pointed forward (like the fbody guys do). Also I can't find out if we can keep the AC or not.

road pilot

I don't believe 5k will happen. The whole drivetrain will have to be
beefed up, tires, etc, etc............There is a whole can of worms
that you don't want to see. You better start thinking about
doubling your expenses. Listen to those that have already been
down the road..good luck.

breecher_7

5 grand and turbo corvette in the same sentence...

I just about fell out of my chair..

A good turbocharger, intercooler, and fuel system will cost you that alone.

Even if you are building this thing yourself, double that budget. Its going to nickle and dime you.

Its not like slapping a front mount on a F-Body.

Fastlsvette

why does everyone assume that since its a corvette it has to be double the expense? I mean its the same engine, the computer its not hard to tune so whats so hard about it or lets put it this way whats so different than an f body? You even have more space on the engine bay than an fbody and easier to fit an intercooler in their

Fastlsvette

truck manifolds but that deletes your A/C, so im still trying to find more info but doesn't seem the corvette forum is as diverse as the ls1tech one

blackmachdown

it is feasible to do a DIY kit for a low amount of money, but honestly the UPP kit is the way to go, I have had the kit for a Year and the only problem i have is traction. i still have A/C, and power steering and all that jazz.

As far as DIY stuff your better off back at the LS1 forums, i havent seen alot of DIY builds on this forum

Fastlsvette

wow just looked it up its not bad at all, see if you could build this yourself, you could save some money I mean if they can do it, why can't you? just find a reputable welder and show him the design at least from where I'm at , that's how we see it

breecher_7

And if you think you have more room in a C5 then you do in a F-Body you are sadly mistaken. You can fit a big turbo right in front of the water pump on a F-Body, you wont be doing that with a C5.

The "double the cost" has nothing to do with it just because its a "corvette" it has to do with it because everything about the cars design makes running a turbo system more difficult. The fuel system alone is FAR more complicated then a F-Body.

But what the hell do I know, ive only fabbed up a few turbo systems over the years.

Good Luck, Post up Pictures as you go.

Fastlsvette

Ok well then is that the reason that people go S/C on the vettes? Ok and i knew they have two fuel pumps, so the fuel return lines and how the fue systeml works is really hard?

ysb02

Yes x 10000. The centri supercharger is the easiest FI to mount in a c5.

breecher_7

They have one fuel pump from the factory. They have a Siphon Jet pump that works like an eductor in the passenger side tank that transfers fuel from one tank to another, it is not electric. It uses fuel pressure from the primary pump to create suction.

There are a few tried and true fuel systems out there for these cars, none of them are cheap. Expect to spend around $1500 to do it right. (pump, lines, rails, regulator) It can be done cheaper but the fuel system is not a place to cut corners in my opinion.

Centri blowers are by far the easiest form of F/I for these cars, they are also VERY affordable and give great results. Both A&A and ECS offer outstanding complete kits in the $5-6K range last time I checked.

JDS99

A single would certainly be cheaper than twins, but $5k I doubt. Maybe if you weren't messing with the engine, and already had any fuel and driveline mods to support, and use parts from China.

FWIW, I just fitted a CTS-V a/c compressor and bracket to mine and gained a lot of room to the manifold. Took a bit of grinding on the compressor tabs, but not anywhere that it matters. Just knocking down the casting some. Some of the cast manifolds might fit with that compressor as it sits closer to the block and the body is a much smaller diameter. Still though, if you do that to fit a manifold then go ahead and throw in the new compressor/bracket/lines/dryer/Freon/etc. and it all adds back up again.

Cheap and FI, particularly turbo, just don't mix. Mindset needs to be more like "I'm going to build a custom turbo kit and hemorrhage cash until it's done".

0CK@UPPCOS

If you have the tools, ability, and 100+ hrs to spare, sure go for it! But the second that you say "reputable welder", generally they don't work for free (trust me, mine cost me a hefty penny)! Generally with any TT setup we do, we have EASILY $10-$15K in R&D alone. You buy an abundance of material that you won't use, just to have it cause you won't really know what you'll need till you're in there, and 1/2 of everything you do will need to be redone because something somewhere else won't fit. Then tack on that you're paying a "reputable welder" for his time.... I'd say doubling the cost isn't even close to what it will really cost.

But then that still isn't DIY, cause you aren't really doing it, you're still paying someone else to. So that would be classified more as a "custom one-off kit" which tend to cost MUCH more than a prefabbed kit.

Now if you have a mig welder, some piping laying around, and really don't care what it looks like, give it a whirl! It's really not rocket science, exhaust in, exhaust out, air in, air out!

blackmachdown

You guys are making great progress on my stage 2 kit

Y2KRoadster

OMG that is nice stuff right there!


To the OP...

If you are starting with a basic car...it will run you much more than 5K.

I just built my fuel system about 9 months ago...ran me close to 2000. Now that is to support close to 1000RWHP but trust me, you are going to want good fuel with a turbo. Not sure of your power goals but anything over 600RWHP and a 255 with a BAP is not going to cut it. At the very least...plan on spending around 1200...at the LEAST.

You also have to take in to account the tuning that will be required...that will be about $500. If you tune yourself, congrats. I believe HP Tuners runs $650. What about other boltons? I'll be nice here and say, an extra 1000...even though we both know you will spend much more than that.

So we are up to about $2700 bucks for the bare minimum you will need to accompany your turbo. That leaves you with $2300 to buy a turbo, I/C, all the piping, fab work, labor, and other nickel and dime stuff. I think you know that is not going to be possible.

If you want other boltons like a different cam, intake, exhaust, sticky tires...add about 2500 on top of that.



So, for a couple more K, you can by a nice TT setup from a proven shop and have piece of mind.

EDIT: If you build a BAP/255/Injector fuel system...that alone will run $850...just an FYI (and it will not be usable over 600RWHP).

PhysicsDude55

If you want the cheapest way to add a lot of power, supercharging is the best way.

If you have your heart set on turbo, the UPP kit is the cheapest, or browse the For Sale section in the forum. You'd be surprised how often a used turbo or supercharger kit gets put up for sale. A lot of guys are converting their C5's back to stock and parting out their mods to upgrade to a C6 or C7.

If you do some real hard searching, you can find cheaper DIY ways to do things... especially fuel. It seems on this forum a lot of the cheap solutions are downplayed so that the vendors can sell their kits.

If you're handy and crafty you can make it work. But just be aware its a lot of work. You have to beef up the drivetrain, redo the PCV, add more gauges, upgrade fuel, upgrade wheels/tires, and beef up or get a new engine if you want real, semi-reliable power. Not to mention tuning and it would be wise to put a higher flow exhaust on.

You're already on the right track with the LQ9. Good luck

robert miller

5,k for a set up on turbo,s.